Family
by StormWolf10
Summary: Eighth in 'The Making of Theta Tyler' series. Tony and Theta reflect on family after a particularly devastating accident


**A/N: I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. But it had to be done. :') Please read and review.**

Tony found Theta propping up the bar at the nearby pub, his face pale and drawn as he sipped at his beer. He quickly crossed to his nephew's side, drawing him in for a hug.

"Why us? Why our family?" Theta asked suddenly, leaning into his Uncle's embrace.

"I don't know, Theta, I don't know," Tony admitted, tears slipping down his cheeks.

It was quarter past ten in the morning and, strictly speaking, it was far too early to be drinking, but both men decided that this event was an exception. As Theta continued hugging his Uncle, oblivious to the strange looks they were getting from the pub's other patrons, Tony struggled to come to terms with the fact that he was all his twenty-seven year old nephew had left.

"Have…Have the Police told you exactly what happened?" Tony asked quietly, sliding onto the barstool beside Theta's.

Theta grunted an affirmative just as the barman placed a beer in front of Tony, smiling sympathetically. Tony reached for his wallet, but the barman shook his head.

"It's on the house, Tony. I heard what happened," the barman said quietly, nodding at Theta.

"Thanks, James," Tony replied, smiling shakily.

Tony and Theta were regulars at this particular pub; they met up about once a month on a Friday night to chat. Tony had been slightly shocked when his nephew had first suggested it, but was extremely grateful that Theta still wanted to spend time with him even despite having a family of his own. Well, _had_ a family of his own.

"What did the Police say, then?" Tony questioned his nephew tentatively.

"It was some drunken teenager who'd only just passed his test." Theta answered quietly "Lost control of the car and went through a red light. Crashed straight into Mum's car, head on. The poor kid apparently won't even deny it."

"D- Did they die immediately?" Tony croaked, his throat suddenly very dry.

Theta snorted.

"The car crumpled like a crisp packet, what do you think?" he asked his Uncle bitterly, glaring at him.

"That's something, then," Tony murmured.

Theta frowned, evidently confused and consumed in his own grief.

"At least we know they didn't suffer," Tony pointed out to his nephew gently.

Again, Theta merely grunted in reply. The two men took a sip of their beer and slowly began to realise that they were all each other had left, besides friends. The silence between the Uncle and nephew lasted for several long minutes, the sounds of the sparse few other patrons in the pub drowning out. Theta fiddled idly with his wedding ring.

"What do I do now, Tony?" he asked suddenly, tears beginning to fall again.

Tony sighed.

"I don't know," Tony admitted, feeling for all his life like a broken record.

"They were going shopping, damn it!" Theta yelled suddenly, his grief and anger finally getting the better of him.

The other few patrons in the pub looked up suddenly, but all turned back to their drinks and conversations rather quickly when Tony glared at them.

"That's all they wanted to do!" Theta sobbed, quieter this time "That was it, nothing dangerous, or horrible! Mum just wanted to take Ella and Freya out for the day!"

Tony was at a loss for what to say; of course, Tony had lost his sister in the car crash that had occurred just an hour and a half before, but Theta had also lost his wife and daughter.

"It's meant to be Freya's birthday next Friday," Theta continued mournfully "we'd already bought and wrapped her birthday present."

Tony squeezed his nephew's shoulder in reassurance.

"She was going to be four." Theta added, even though Tony already knew all this- after all, he was Freya's great Uncle- "Freya was so excited, she'd asked for this pink fairy costume and Ella had finally managed to track it down yesterday for her."

Tony had to say something now, he couldn't just sit there and say nothing.

"I'm sorry, Theta," Tony murmured "I miss them too,"

However, Theta continued as if his Uncle hadn't spoken.

"That's why Mum was taking her out today. She wanted to take Freya with her to choose her birthday present."

"Theta," Tony chipped in, louder this time, determined "you're going to come back to my apartment tonight, stay there. I'm not having you go back to that big empty house on your own."

**~StormWolf10~**

Theta sighed, tossing and turning, the duvet covers tangling around his legs. He couldn't sleep. The clock on the bedside table read 2:30 am, but the numbers blurred thanks to Theta's tired eyes. Every time he tried to sleep, he kept seeing his Mum, his wife, his daughter. Kept wondering what they had thought about in their final moments, whether they'd been in pain. Theta thought about his Mum, and how when he was younger she had always seemed sad. Of course, that had dimmed over the years, but Theta knew his Mum had never stopped grieving over his father. He remembered his Mum taking him to school on his first day, he remembered her throwing him birthday parties and working so, _so_ hard just so he could have the latest games console, the latest phone, the newest bike. Just so he wouldn't get bullied at school for having less, or for coming from a single parent family. Theta had tried time and time again to tell his Mum that he didn't mind, but she had merely replied that she had grown up being bullied because she didn't have the same as everyone else, that she didn't have a Dad, and she'd been adamant that Theta's life wouldn't be the same. And then there was Ella. His beautiful, gorgeous wife Ella. He'd met her at senior school, and had loved her almost instantly. By the time he was fourteen, Theta had known he wanted to be a Dad, and he knew he wanted to date Ella, but had been too scared to ask her. He hadn't plucked up the courage to ever do more than speak to Ella until Prom, where he asked her to be his date. Theta had been sure that she wouldn't say yes, but she had. They remained friends after that for another year before Theta finally decided to ask her out. After five wonderful years of dating, they had married, and a year later they were welcoming little Freya Rose Tyler into the family. Freya. His sweet, adorable little Freya. She had been a surprise, not at all planned, but not at all unwanted. Theta remembered the look on his Mum's face when he'd told her she was going to be a Grandma. Rose had been absolutely delighted, even more so when Freya was born and Theta and Ella had told her Freya's full name. Rose had protested at first, although flattered that her son and daughter-in-law wanted to partially name their daughter after her, while Tony griped that his older sister was just too modest. Little Freya had inherited her mother's light brown hair, her father's freckles and her Grandma's smile and personality; sometimes stubborn, always compassionate, Freya Rose Tyler was her Daddy's daughter.

Had been. She _had been_ her Daddy's daughter, Theta corrected himself. He'd miss them all so much. His girls. His beautiful, wonderful, _lovely_ girls. Theta stubbornly wiped at the hot tears that were now spilling down his cheeks, and turned to bury his face in his pillow. Outside the door, unbeknown to the twenty seven year old widower inside, sat Tony, his head resting against the door as he listened to his nephew sob.

"Oh, Theta," Tony murmured, wiping furiously at his own tears.


End file.
